Training on an empty stomach

[s2h]

it makes NO SENSE at all to train without food..

you need glycogen to fuel your muscles for training.. training when your at your MOST catabolic is not wise.. and is not only going to help you burn fat, but also muscle!

this^^^i need at least 4 meals in me b4 i can fuel a solid training session.....

[s2h]

I can barely get out of bed w/o something in my stomach. I don't like the low blood sugar feeling I get after trainign balls to the wall even w/ eating, so I don't think I'd be worth much w/ no food in the AM. (Even AM cardio w/ 1/2 a grapefruit is pretty brutal...)

sass i hope your not training "balls to the wall"....lol...

[Jason Newman]

do it every morning, hard time making massive gains, but the look is great, very good for keepin the furnace burning, but i train on pepto pro and carbs so not totally empty, but it is only a preworkout drink and then the gym at 6am

[Pheedno]

I did with some good workouts when my carbs were around 4-500 and protein was upwards of 500.
Glycogen is stored and used as needed, so the anaerobic process is going to utilize the stored muscle glycogen as you're using the muscle. Provided you're getting in what you need through day, I dont see too much issue on the musclebuilding/muscle loss. It's actually pretty hard to loose muscle if your protein is high enough.

[BigJD69]

bra I wake up to hunger pains even in the offseason!!

but to answer the thread I would say not good. I guess if you dont care about muscle mass and growing as much as possible then go for it. If you're using the theory for cardio while fasted for training then that is waaay outside the box. (not in a good way) Training is meant to cause a reason for the body to grow. cardio is to burn fat. Training on an empty stomach is like driving on a road trip with barely enough gas to make it down the block. Why would you limit your ability to train as hard as possible by taking away the energy source. Now i can somewhat understand people who cant stomach food but that just means you need more time between the food and training.

I have trained on an empty stomach multiple times and each time half way through the workout I felt like I was gonna pass out.

Bra I'm 240lbs I look at food and gain weight!

[Jon Bodin]

I work out early AM also & I don't like a full stomach when I train. A little hunger seems to add to my intensity. I do take a couple of Hyperdrives 3.0 right when I wake up and have a whey shake in water about 30 minutes pre. If I am feeling a little tired or lack motivation I will eat a banana with my shake and seem to have a good workout.

If I take BCAA's (Chained Out), a NO product, or creatine on an empty stomach in the early morning I will have 'bathroom issues' that will detract from my workout.

If I eat a 'food' meal I have to wait at least 90 minutes before I can workout. I just don't react well with a full stomach.

[ironstudent]

I am pretty sure if you can train on an empty stomach first thing in the morning...you aint training very hard. period.

[rocco]

I am pretty sure if you can train on an empty stomach first thing in the morning...you aint training very hard. period.

I train harder.

[joe-ali]

All ways work depending on the person. Try doing bcaa and flaz seed oil before u train. I bet u will like it more and burn more fat as well as keep ur joints safe. I use this in final weeks coz I stop doing cardio 4 weeks out. Keeps u hard full and big especially in the legs.

[joe-ali]

All ways work depending on the person. Try doing bcaa and flax seed oil before u train. I bet u will like it more and burn more fat as well as keep ur joints safe. I use this in final weeks coz I stop doing cardio 4 weeks out. Keeps u hard full and big especially in the legs.

[MrAust92]

I have been training at 5.00 am for years and the only thing I consume before training is a sugar free pre-wprkout product and a strong coffee.

I have enjoyed great results with this approach and yes I trained in the evenings for many years prior to this until work and family commitments forced me to schedule my days differently.

Its really a mental thing, you just need to toughen up a bit and do it.

To suggest that your muscles will shrivel up and fade just because you train without a full days worth of meals in your digestive system is absolute nonsense.

If it suits your schedule just suck it up and do it.

[MrAust92]

I am pretty sure if you can train on an empty stomach first thing in the morning...you aint training very hard. period.

Complete nonsense.

[•P®øD¶G¥•]

Complete nonsense.

Of course, but that depends on the person, type of diet, type of workout, etc.....

Also, if you've never done fasted training before, you will feel weaker (it's mostly mental, but possibly a little physical too) but the more you do it as with anything the better you get at it.

Some real world results & science in the links below:

http://www.leangains.com/2009/12/pre...etabolism.html

http://www.leangains.com/2009/12/fas...le-growth.html

[DanicaFan]

I think he is meaning cardio only, not a weightlifting session. Weight training should never be done an empty stomach.

In the morning or whenever you wake up from sleep (3rd shifters, like myself ), you are in a fasted state. Your glycogen levels are low at this point.
I am talking about low/moderate intensity cardio at this time.

The idea behind doing cardio after you wake up in a fasted state is that your body is low on glycogen so it will then use fat as energy. More calories are burned from your fat stores. This is actually true, however, there is a catch. Doing this cardio in the fasted state also increases the release of cortisol which is not a friend to the amino acids. It actually hinders the amino acids to make glucose for energy.

So, yes, doing it in the morning is not a bad idea. However, I recommend taking some BCAA's prior to doing cardio. This will help minimize the body trying to tap into muscle for energy. Some people even eat some carbs prior to doing cardio. If you do, keep them minimum.

As for HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) cardio. Never do this on an empty stomach. The body reacts to HIIT cardio just like it does weight training by relying on glucose for energy, hormone releases, etc. You should treat your HIIT session just like a weight training session. Eat your carbs and BCAA's before doing.

For HIIT, I recommend doing this on a non-lifting day due to the glycogen depletion and the body's hormonal responses as Ive mentioned above.

[Yolo]

I'm cutting at this point and all my training is done on an empty stomach 2 hrs after I wake up. My numbers are going up on all major lifts. Is it optimal? Probably not, but I'm not really complaining.